Egotistical Dr Gary Michelson names everything after himself and pays for the privilege with transactional philanthropy

Good article in the Times below about egotistical individuals who buy naming rights of buildings. It's called "transactional philanthropy or charity by lawyers." I think it's just paid advertising, marketing, public relations. Gary Michelson donated the money to get the press to try to salvage his horrible reputation.

http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-0311-shakely-philanthropy-naming-rights-20150310-story.html

The article states that there are very few true philanthropists today. They're mainly egotistical insecure people who demand their name on everything, such as Dr Gary Michelson. Gary tells his silly story at the ground breaking on video stating that USC called him up and wanted to honor him by naming a building after him. No, they just wanted his money.

I have a feeling that the people who actually have to mention the name of the building will probably give it a nickname like "the crazy gary center," "the bldg that evil and greed built."

"The third and currently dominant model is Transactional Philanthropy, or Charity by Lawyers. Here the charitable impulse is codified. You put your money down, sign here and your name goes on the building. Most big-ticket naming is formulaic. Want to endow a university professorship? That'll be $5 million, $6 million at a top-tier school. Want your name on a building? That'll be 25% of the construction cost, plus 5% more for long-term maintenance. Some fundraising insiders think Geffen got a bargain paying only $100 million for a $500-million project.

Transactional philanthropy contracts often spell out the terms of a gift with great specificity. There is certainly a minimum length of the naming obligation; perpetuity is usually off the table. There are default provisions as well, such as: What if the donor goes bankrupt or to the clink before the gift is completed? And, of course, details on branding. I don't know who came up with calling the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts "the Wallis," but I doubt it sprang up spontaneously from its Beverly Hills patrons.

Branding, which is at the heart of philanthropic naming, can be tricky. Will the full name David Geffen Hall stick? New Yorkers notoriously shorten even nicknames (A-Rod, MOMA, the Met). It could become the Geff.

But if our billionaire becomes displeased with his Lincoln Center agreement, there is another juicy opportunity awaiting him in his adopted home town. "Mr. Geffen, the Los Angeles Music Center is on the line. They want to give you an honorary baton."

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